Top Eight “NZ Politics Daily” reads
It’s almost a politics-free zone during New Zealand’s summer at the moment. But below are some of the more interesting and insightful items from the last 24 hours.
1) The New Zealand Government should join South Africa in taking Israel to the International Court of Justice to protest its violation of obligations under the Genocide Convention according to John Minto, writing in the Post today – see: Why NZ should join South Africa’s genocide case against Israel
Minto points out that New Zealand did something similar two years ago in taking action against Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and that in backing South Africa, New Zealand could help “put in place an immediate ceasefire to end the war and Israel’s indiscriminate killing of Palestinians. It would allow unfettered humanitarian aid to enter Gaza”. He also says that the International Court should investigate “war crimes committed in the October 7 attack on Israel”.
2) Can capitalists fix the problems of the planet? It’s become very fashionable to channel investments into companies based on their ESG (“Environmental, Social and Governance”) performance. Today Josie Pagani says it’s a bit of a con, and a backlash is building against reliance on such “corporate responsibility” trends – see: Why investing ethically means looking past ESG and its waffle
Yes, your KiwiSaver or wealthy fund managers might promise lots of environmentally conscious investments, but they won’t do much about economic inequality or deliver anything substantial. Pagani concludes: “let’s be realistic about the power of finance to make a difference. If you really want to create change, you need to support charities, churches, unions and political parties that reflect your values and priorities, and that will legislate for accountable social and environmental ends.”
3) The Ministry for the Environment’s Laura Gemmell has come up with a suggested list of New Year’s resolutions for New Zealanders, because she says humans are “prone to greed, selfishness and, often, unfathomable stupidity” – see: Climate resolutions — how you can change the world (paywalled)
Amongst advice such as “Stop buying unnecessary stuff” and “Stop wasting food”, the Chief Executive of the Ministry for the Environment’s “Eco Choice Aotearoa” has some political advice on making environmental change: “Are our elected officials doing right by people and planet? This is not about picking a side, it’s about holding decision-makers to account. You can do that in a number of ways; by joining a community protest, writing to your local MP, signing a petition against a resumption of offshore oil and gas exploration and voting for representatives who value the same things you do.”
4) Conservative former Act MP Muriel Newman evaluates the health of New Zealand’s political system for Newstalk ZB today, and suggests it’s in a vulnerable state, especially due to the last government’s constitutional changes in terms of co-governance and Treaty arrangements – see: The state of democracy (paywalled)
Newman argues that the judiciary have also fundamentally changed the constitution and the way the rule of law works by including “tikanga”, or Māori custom, in the law. As an example, she points to the way that this is impacting on the Marine and Coastal Area Act (MACA), and argues that the new government will have to fix this.
5) Longtime politician, writer and feminist Sandra Coney argues today in the Herald that recent acts of racist vandalism in a cemetery are linked to the new government, because “Luxon and co are validating the racists” by unleashing “a raft of petty vindictive acts to put Maori in their place because they want them subservient”. She asks: “Wasn’t this bound to unleash every nasty little resentful white person in acts of hate?” – see: There’s a link between the new Government and the anti-Māori spiel
6) What is the new government going to do about spending on defence? Today’s Herald editorial draws attention to the fact that new ministers are suggesting that they will take a more hawkish approach to international relations and war, but that they don’t seem to be backing this up in terms of greater defence spending – see: Our military can’t keep muddling along (paywalled)
The newspaper editorial laments the deficiencies in the current military, and says “Difficult decisions are looming on expensive military commitments including the replacement of most of NZ’s naval fleet”. Attention is drawn to the fact that “NZ spends about 1 per cent of GDP on defence – only half the level of some of its allies.” However, according to the Herald, “National has given little indication that it intends to make defence a priority in this parliamentary term”, and that current fiscal austerity means that increasing military spending will be difficult.
7) The way that local government works is fundamentally broken. Today, Gerrard Eckhoff (formerly a local government councillor and an Act MP) says: “Imagine a cabinet comprising National, Labour, Green, Act and New Zealand First, all representing their own parties’ agendas, even attempting to make decisions for the country in a cohesive way. That is exactly what local government believes it can do, yet constantly illustrates it cannot. How then is it possible to work towards a consensus when differing opinions are so entrenched in ideology?” – see his Otago Daily Times opinion piece, Let the die be cast on vital local government reform (paywalled)
Eckhoff argues that local government has been captured by an anti-democratic ethos, and that those elected are there chasing a “source of income”. He calls on the new Minister of Local Government to declare war on the “deplorable state” of local councils.
8) Matthew Hooton appraises the chances of the Labour Party returning to government in 2026, and says today that they have “a better chance of returning to power in under three years than most new oppositions”. Moreover, the caucus still has a lot of heavy hitters, meaning it would have “the most experienced incoming senior team of the MMP era” – see: Apologies needed for Labour to be taken seriously (paywalled)
Reviewing the Labour Government’s decline, Hooton ponders what would’ve happened if Chris Hipkins hadn’t taken over from Jacinda Ardern as PM: “It would have been better for Labour had Grant Robertson become Prime Minister when Jacinda Ardern retired, not Hipkins. That wasn’t possible because Robertson had back trouble in late 2022 and so couldn’t sit down or fly. But Robertson and his late-innings ally David Parker would have proceeded with the wealth tax, funding a $20 per week tax cut for everyone, a more likely election winner than pathetic offerings like GST-free fruit. Robertson, an extrovert, would then have campaigned better than the introverted Hipkins.”
Hooton also suggests that Hipkins needs to be replaced: “Thirty-eight-year-old list MP Kieran McAnulty is on manoeuvres, with speculation list MP Ginny Andersen would make a good running mate. Both served briefly as ministers in the last year of the defeated regime. McAnulty, while assuring Labour activists he is well to the left of Ardern on economics and tax, has built a blokey non-woke brand based on driving a ute and liking a beer and a bet. He’s certainly more in tune with today’s post-Covid, recessionary New Zealand than anyone from Grey Lynn.”
Dr Bryce Edwards
Political Analyst in Residence, Democracy Project, School of Government, Victoria University of Wellington
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